Pokemon MD, Explorers of the Universe
by Gamefreak1996
Summary: Join Bolt the Shinx and Flare the Vulpix on an epic quest filled with action, thrills, laughs, and excitement! When Bolt wakes up as a Shinx in a new world full of only Pokemon, he needs to quickly recollect his lost memory and work with a timid Vulpix named Flare, and a cast of characters from Lucario's Guild to prevent an eternal storm from consuming the land. I DONT OWN POKEMON!
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Through the storm, a boy ran as fast as he could through the wind and rain. Thunder crashed above him, and the trees around him were whipped back by the powerful gales and pelting rain. His light-blue hoodie was soaked through from the downpour, and his black pants were covered in dirt stains. Above him, he saw a mysterious cloaked figure in the treetops, chasing after him. _I gotta lose him!_ he thought, _No matter what!_ He turned sharply and made a sprint for the cave ahead. His sneakers dug into the wet ground with each step until he reached the cave.

As the boy wandered deeper into the cavern, he looked over his shoulder to make sure that the figure wasn't following him. After about three minutes of exploring, the boy sat down to rest. _I hope my friends and family are okay..._he looked to the ceiling of the cave, and noticed a shadow moving along the stalagmites above him. Without thinking twice, the boy got right back to his feet and ran, knowing who it was. But soon, he entered a large, circular chamber with a large pit in the middle. He stopped just in time to stop himself from falling in, but got a good view of the bottomless abyss within it. The shadow soon entered the room and formed into the cloaked figure. His red eyes glowed in the darkness of the cave.

"There is no escape, boy." The figure said. "You can stop this pointless resistance now."

"What the hell do you want from me?!" The boy shouted, knowing he was cornered.

"You should know well what i want, child. You aren't like any average human."

"If i knew what you want, why would i ask you?"

"Normally, I'd kill any human I come across, but for you, I'll make an exception...if you agree to work for me." The figure stretched out his hand to the boy.

"NO WAY!" the boy yelled " I know what you're up to! And I'm not gonna help you kill innocent people! So go to hell!"

The figure paused at this. Then he chuckled. "I see...what a shame." He raised a hand and snapped his fingers. Soon, a mighty gust of wind filled the cavern. The wind was so strong, the stalagmites above broke off and danced in the torrent of wind. When it all died down, A large, flying Pokemon was behind the figure, with the same glowing red eyes.

"I command you..." The figure said with venom in his voice "...to kill this worthless child." The massive creature fired a giant blast of wind at the boy. It made a direct hit. The boy flew back into the pit, his hoodie and pants torn to shreds as he fell into the infinite darkness. "That puts me one step behind." the figure muttered to himself. "But it had to be done." He turned to the creature behind him. "Thank you for your aid, my second in command." He smiled. Then, a flash of red light later, the Pokemon and figure were gone.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Ugh...where am i?" the boy asked himself as he woke up and looked around. He was still in the cave, but something felt a bit different. _How'd I get here?_ he wondered, but alas, try as he might, he had no luck remembering. _Come to think of it..._he realized _I can't seem to remember_ _anything_! He looked around for a way out of the cavern, and found a passage on the far side of the room. He walked up to it, but was blocked by a Geodude. "Hey, mind moving aside so i can pass? I kinda need to get outta here." the boy said. But instead of moving, the Geodude attacked him with tackle. The boy fell to the ground, taken by surprise. The Geodude charged again, but this time, he evaded the attack and darted out of the room and into a vast maze of caverns and corridors. _Well this is just great! _He thought as he ran _I'm lost in a cave with no memory, with an aggressive Geodude right behind me! _He spotted other Pokemon as he ran, but decided not to stop and say hi.

Soon he found the exit to the cave and sprinted toward it. _Almost there!_ Blinding daylight consumed him as he dashed out of the cave. As he slowed down, he noticed how odd he felt. Why was he on all fours if he was standing? He tried to stand upright, but couldn't keep his balance and fell over. He looked down at his hands...Or rather paws. For his hands were now light-blue paws. "WHAT THE HELL?!" he shouted, "Why do I have paws?! What happened to me?!" He ran down the road as fast as he could. _This has got to be some kind of dream..._He thought to himself. After a while, he found a pond by the road he was on and looked into the water. Staring back at him was the reflection of a shinx. He waved a paw over the water, and sure enough, the reflection did the same. He tried to pinch himself awake, but all that did was hurt him. Nothing changed. _So I really am a Pokemon now... _He thought. He trudged his way tiredly to the nearest shady spot he could find: an apple tree just on the side of the road. There he plopped down onto his stomach and fell asleep.

Further down the road the Shinx slept by, there was a small village known as Cumula town, Known well for its usually pleasent weather. It was also well known for being the home of the famed Lucario Exploration Guild. And just outside this particular guild, a Vulpix paced nervously back and forth across the lawn, trying to muster up the courage to go inside. Just as she had finally seemed to gain her confidence, A Sneasel walked out of the front gate, causing the Vulpix to flinch. Following him was a Shuppet, a Sandile, and a Pawniard. The Sneasel spotted the Vulpix as she tried to turn around and leave, and with a single leap, landed in front of her. "Going somewhere, hothead?" he asked, grinning. The other three surrounded her as well. "What brings you to guild property? It's not nice to loiter around other people's lawns."

"L-l-leave me alone, Razor" the Vulpix stammered, trying to look as brave as possible. "I-I'm j-just on my way to join the g-guild."

"You of all Pokemon, Join the Lucario Guild?" Shadow the Shuppet laughed "That's the funniest joke i ever heard."

"It's not a joke!" the Vulpix snapped. " I will join! Just you wait and see!"

"Listen, furball." Croc the Sandile said, "there are two things you lack that you need to be an explorer. Guts and skill. Who's gonna want a weakling whos afraid of her own shadow?" the other three howled with laughter. Then Croc snapped at the Vulpix's heels, causing her to jump back with fright, and the jerks to laugh even harder. She didn't want to cry in front of them, but she couldn't stop the tears from coming.

"Aw, is baby Flare crying?" Paladin the Pawniard taunted as he shoved her roughly to the ground. She whimpered, praying that they would just get bored and leave, but soon she felt herself get jerked up by her hair as Razor tugged on it like a leash. "Heel, fleabag!" He barked at her, as if she were some sort of pet. "Come along! Come on!" He ordered, leading her by her hair. She reluctantly obeyed, afraid of what they might do if she didn't. The other three followed them, kicking and tripping her as they made their way to the pond.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

At the pond, the Shinx was sleeping soundly, until the sound of laughter and yelping woke him up. He looked around to see what made that noise. What he saw was four Pokemon surrounding a Vulpix, kicking her as she lay on the ground, crying. "What's wrong, baby Flare? If you want to be an explorer, you need to be tough!" Razor laughed as he slid a claw over her cheek. At this the Shinx got up and ran toward the group, anger pulsing through his veins. _How dare they...! Attacking a Pokemon who can't even defend herself...! _He tackled Razor into the pond behind the group, surprising the group and their victim. The Shinx glared at the thugs sharply. "Leave her alone." he said.

"You little runt!" Razor shouted, climbing out of the pond. "Get him!" And with that, the other 3 attacked. Shadow hit the Shinx with a shadow ball, sending him to the ground. The Shinx just got right back up and tried to use tackle again, this time on Shadow. The attack phased through the ghost type harmlessly, and Shadow laughed. Then, a mud-slap hit him from behind, followed by something ramming him from below, Courtesy of Croc. Flare wanted to help him, but how? She was too afraid to move, let alone fight. Even if she wanted to move, though, she couldn't. The jerks had given her a pretty bad beating. Soon, the Shinx was laying on the ground, out cold. The four thugs laughed at him. "Trying to be a big shot, eh, kid? Trying to be a brave hero, saving damsels in distress?" Razor smirked "Well, I'll admit you got guts kid. But without the strength to back it off, that bravery facade is worthless."

"Feh. He barely put up a fight. What a weakling." Shadow said."If he were smarter he'd know I'm immune to normal and fighting type attacks."

"Hey Paladin, Didn't you want any action? why didn't you join in?" Croc asked Paladin.

"If I were to fight someone, I'd make it a one on one duel, not gang up on him." Paladin explained. "Even I have a sense of honor when it comes to combat."

"Whatever. Let's go. Another victory for Team Darkstorm!" Razor shouted as he turned to lead his team back to the guild...until he heard a voice behind him.

"This...isn't...over...yet...!" it said. Razor looked over his shoulder at the Shinx trying to get back up onto his feet. "You jerks...Picking on someone...who can't fight back..."

"...Fine" Razor said, turning around. "I'll admit you're really gutsy to challenge us, and to stand after a beat-down like that is also impressive." He flexed his claws and grinned."So if you want to keep fighting...I'll happily oblige"

"STOP! PLEASE!"

Flare was standing in front of the Shinx, tears in her eyes. "D-don't hurt him anymore..." the thugs, and even she couldn't believe she was standing up to them. Then Razor laughed. Long and hard. He simply glared at her, and she whimpered, knowing what was to come. Razor rushed toward them, raising his claws, ready to strike them down...But then a Lucario appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his arm. The other three shrunk back, and were getting ready to flee, when Lucario turned to them. "Don't move an inch." He barked. They froze and simply sat down, heads down with fear. "Razor, I don't know what to say. Attacking innocent Pokemon, taunting them...Why? Why do you do this?" Razor was silent. "I want you and your team to meet with me after dinner tonight. We're going to have a good long talk about this."

He let Razor go, and the four trudged back to the guild. He then turned to the other two. "I'm sorry for any trouble they caused. I will deal with them personally. Until then, come to the guild so we can treat those wounds." He picked up the Shinx, and led the vulpix to the guild. It was a massive, tower-like structure with a drawbridge, gate, and moat. As they crossed the drawbridge, Flare noticed several Pokemon watching them. Some with kindness, others with pity, more still with confusion. He led them down a corridor to a single door at the end. "Nurse Audino, We need your assistance." Lucario said. An Audino immediately responded.

"What's the matter, Guildmaster?" She asked. Then she spotted the pair of small Pokemon with him. "Oh, my...the poor dears...come along, I'll take care of you."

"Th-thank you, Ma'am." Flare said. As she led them to the back. She placed the Shinx gently on the bed, then began bandaging his wounds. After she finished with him, she turned to treat Flare. "What happened to you two?" Audino asked. "You look like you were in a fight." Flare hesitated, then told her what happened between them and Team Darkstorm. "Oh, those little demons! I swear when I get the chance, I'm gonna-!" She stopped in mid-sentence when the Shinx stirred, but didn't wake up. "But...all that aside, this one was rather brave. not many can stand up to them. Even if they aren't the strongest team here, they're still pretty tough. Anyways, I'm off to get dinner. I'll bring you two something to eat as well." She left the room, and Flare looked up at the still unconscious Shinx, hoping he was alright.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Hours passed, as noon shifted to night, and the Shinx was still at least he seemed to be feeling a bit better, given his more peaceful expression. Flare had fallen asleep on the floor beside the bed, but was woken up when she heard the sheets ruffling. She immediately jumped to her feet and looked up into the Shinx's gold eyes. "Oh, y-you're awake!" She breathed. The Shinx just nodded. _That's right... _He recalled _I tried to help this Vulpix, but I got knocked out...wait..._ He turned to Flare.

"Did you just...talk?"

"Uh, yeah. I did." Flare said, a bit confused as to why he was asking this. The Shinx's eyes shot wide open, and a look of surprise came across his face

"Y-YOU DID! YOU'RE TALKING?! BUT YOU'RE A POKEMON!"

"So are you..." Flare said, wondering why this Shinx was acting so strangely. "You're acting a bit weird...are you okay? Or do all shinxs act like this?"

"I'm not a Shinx! Well, now i am, but that's not the point. I was a human." This just make Flare look even more confused. "It's a long story." Flare was silent for a minute, wondering if he was trying to pull her leg. Then again, he did save her...or at least tried to.

"Well...okay, I believe you."

"Wait, just like that? Really?"

"You defended me back there, so you don't exactly seem to by the type that would lie." The Shinx chuckled a bit. "Wait, why are you laughing? Are you lying?"

"No, It's not that," The Shinx replied, a smirk on his face "It's just that's the first time I've heard that said about me. It feels good." Flare was wondering more and more about this strange Pokemon. But she let it slide for the time being.

"So, what's your name?" Flare asked.

"Bolt. You?"

"Flare."

"Oh goodie, you're awake!" Audino said as she walked back in. "I'm happy to say there's no permanent damage, but you'll have to stay here in bed for a few days. Here's your dinner for tonight." She passed Bolt a bowl of berries, and he started stuffing them into his face"

"mmm, thith ith good!" Bolt said, mouth full. Both Audino and Flare looked at each other, with large sweat drops on their heads.

"Clearly needs a bit of improvement in table manners." Audino said after a short silence, a nervous smile on her face.

"I just hope he doesn't choke" Flare agreed. Just then...Bolt choked.

"Oh dear! Hang on!" Audino said and she immediately did the Heimlech (sorry if i botched the spelling.) maneuver. The berry came out of bolt's mouth and landed back in the bowl. After catching his breath, he nodded to the nurse gratefully. "Now eat slowly."

After dinner, Bolt promptly fell back asleep in bed, sprawled over the mattress.

The next morning, Audino came back into the office sleepily. As she approached the curtain to Bolt's bed, she rubbed her eye and adjusted her favorite hat. Then she pulled it back to find the bed was empty. Immediately she went Ballistic and frantically ran outside the clinic, calling Bolt's name. Meanwhile, Team Darkstorm was just leaving their room when suddenly, a net from beneath them scooped them up and yanked them into the air. Audino heard the angry yells and ranting of Razor and the team, and when she saw them, she cracked up laughing, as did everyone else who saw them. Finally, they were satisfied to see, Team Darkstorm had gotten a taste of their own medicine. Everyone was wondering who had set the trap up, but no one knew...except for a smiling Shinx laying in his bed. And when Flare came in to visit him, she noticed that smile.

"What're you so cheerful about?" She asked.

"Let's just say Team Darkstorm's "hanging around" in the lobby." Bolt snickered. Flare was confused until Audino burst in.

"SOMEONE JUST PRANKED TEAM DARKSTORM!" she shouted "I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! SOMEONE ACTUALLY HAD THE GUTS TO DO THAT!" Then she saw Bolt in bed. "Oh, there you are! I was so worried...wait...where'd you go when I first checked?" She just got a mischievous smirk in response. It was clear where he went those 15 minutes.

Later on, Guildmaster Lucario himself visited the three of them. "Well, I must say, that was rather impressive, Bolt."

"How'd you know it was me?" Bolt asked.

"I saw you setting it up. But don't worry. Your secret's safe with me."

"E-excuse me, guildmaster?" Flare asked. "I w-want to ask you something..."

"Ask away" Lucario looked down tenderly at the timid Vulpix.

"I...I would like to join the guild, please. This guild." Flare spoke barely above a whisper. But Lucario heard her regardless, and shook his head.

"You know it's very dangerous at times, right? And there will be times that you have to show no fear. Are you sure you can apply to those terms?" He asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically.

"I'll do my best!" Flare said, already putting on the bravest look she can, determination burned in her eyes. "I'll do whatever it takes!"

"Then it's settled. Now all you need is a partner for your exploration team." The guildmaster turned to Bolt, who was watching with some interest. "How about him?" he said nodding to him.

"Wait, what?" Bolt asked, snapping out of a daydream.

"Sure" Flare said, smiling gleefully.

"Wait a sec! Where's my say in this?!" Bolt frantically yelled.

"Then henceforth you two are members of the Lucario guild, and your very own exploration team." Lucario said, a pleased look on his face.

"Hang on! I never agreed to this!" Bolt shouted.

"Please, Bolt? I've always dreamed of this day ever since my brother enlisted here." Flare said, trying to soothe the Shinx's ruffled fur. "Plus, Being an explorer is also tons of fun! Exploring uncharted territories, helping Pokemon in need, discovering all sorts of treasure...Don't you want that?" Bolt went silent, then a thoughtful look came on his face. "Do you have anything important to do? Is that why you're trying to resist?"

"If I did have something to do, I probably don't remember it right now..." Bolt said. "Truth is, heh heh...i can't seem to recall anything from my past. Except my name and the fact I was human."

"Wait, you have amnesia?" Flare asked.

"YOU WERE A HUMAN?!" Audino shouted, obviously shocked. Then she sighed and laughed to herself. "Oh, good one, Bolt. You almost had me. But honestly, a human transforming into a Pokemon?"

"I'm dead serious." Bolt said. Audino went silent as her eyes almost popped out of her head.

"Are you feeling okay, Bolt?" she asked with concern etched in each line of her face. "Maybe Team Darkstorm beat you down worse than I thought..."

"This isn't the first time something like this has happened, though, Audino." Lucario said. "This has happened a number of times before."

"G-guildmaster?"

"The first time it happened was with a Torchic by the name of Genji. He and his partner, a mudkip, helped save the world from a meteor that would've destroyed everything, and was causing many natural disasters, like the storms we're having these days. The second time, it was a chimchar, named Fire, and he and his partner, a Totodile, entered a guild belonging to my close friend Wigglytuff. He saved the world twice. Once from a crisis with the fabric of time, another from Darkrai's evil plot. Third, a Pikachu named Jason. Fourth and foremost, a Riolu named Rylan, from another guildmaster, Aggron's guild. His friends saved the world from meshing with the distortion world, which would have damaged both worlds beyond repair. These four pokemon still live in this world to this day, and each has pulled off amazing feats. One thing they and Bolt have in common, though, is their amnesia problem."

After this long explanation, everyone was staring at the wise Lucario. Four more humans, turned into Pokemon? All of which had lost their memories? They rarely had time to turn it around in their heads before he turned to Bolt again."Bolt, if you truly have lost all your memories, it means you have no where left to go, right?"

Bolt stared at the blanket, thinking. "I guess not..."

"So you'll do it?" Flare asked, looking hopefully at Bolt, even giving him that one look that was his kryptonite: the Puppy Dog eyes.

"Yeah...Yeah, count me in!" Bolt said, his grin returning to his face.

**(Author's note: Hey readers. I hope you're enjoying the story so far. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please let me know with a P.M [private message]. Also, just a disclaimer, This chapter references works that aren't really mine. So here's a credits for those stories i referenced.**

**Genji the torchic: Official Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Red/Blue rescue team Manga "Genji's Rescue Team"**

**Fire the Chimchar: Official Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time/Darkness Manga "Explorers of Flame"**

**Rylan the Riolu: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Trials of Hearts, an original story by profile: AzzyFox**

**Jason the Pikachu: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Adventures of Light, and original comic by profile: RYM218**

**Thanks again for reading. And If you wish, check these stories out! They're all pretty good, especially Azzy's and RYM's tales. If you two are reading this, thank you so much for inspiring me to do my own story.)**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Flare was fast asleep in her bed, dreaming of the many adventures to come, when she was awoken by the sound of purring. She groggily opened her eyes and found herself nose to nose with Bolt, who was still asleep, a goofy grin on his face. For a moment, she froze, then she let out a scream and her foreleg instantly moved on it's own, slapping bolt across the face and sending him tumbling across the room. Bolt's eyes were in a daze before they fixed angrily on the Vulpix. "Owwww...what the heck was that for?!"

"For trying to sneak into my bed at night, you pervert!" Flare shouted.

"I never tried to sneak into your bed! I wasn't anywhere near your bed!" Bolt shot back.

"Then how come I woke up to find your face so close to mine?!" Flare demanded.

"I...wait, what?" Bolt asked, a bit confused. Before Flare could respond, however, a Snivy opened the door, rubbing her eyes tiredly.

"Hey newbies, mind keeping the volume down some? Some of us are trying to sleep..." she moaned, then saw the darts shooting back and forth between the two. "Is something wrong?"

"No, everything's okay" both the shinx and vulpix said. The snivy just shrugged and went back to her room.

It was the first official day of being a guild team for Bolt and Flare. Bolt felt happy just to have a place to train, sleep, eat and go on adventures. Flare, however, was so giddy and excited, you couldn't tell how shy and timid she really was. She had a gleeful look on her face as she looked out their window, where they could see the gorgeous lawn of the massive guild. It had to be twenty floors high, at least! A massive spiral staircase led downward to the main lobby, and upward to the roof. On the way down, Bolt and Flare noticed six other dorms, each with the team name imprinted above. from "Team Unova" to "Team Flora". They especially noticed Team Darkstorm's room, and Bolt wanted to stop so he could set up another prank for them, but Flare tugged him by his tail until they were well away from the door.

They made their way into the lobby, where all the others were gathered. Nine Pokemon were lined up on the balcony, headed by Lucario himself. "Good morning, everyone." he stated after everyone got quiet. "Now for the first announcement, I would like to welcome Team Thunderblaze, Bolt the shinx, and Flare the vulpix, into our guild. I trust you will treat them with respect, and help them if they need it."

"YES, GUILDMASTER!" came the reply of the guild.

"Also, I would like to announce the forecast, courtesy of our weather master, Castform. He writes: 'Sunny, sunny, sunny for Monday through Friday, perfect tiome for relaxing. Caution: Storm hitting Saturday, supposedly stronger than last one. Finally, a cloudy Sunday'. Thank you very much, Castform." The guild applauded as Castform took a bow. Then Lucario raised his hand for silence once more. "And now, for closing the morning announcements, the Guild Creed!" He cleared his throat and said the first line:

"Helping Pokemon in need"

"Lucario's Guild will do the deed!" The guild responed.

"As for those pesky outlaws"

"The Lucario Guild will make 'em fall!"

"ALWAYS DO WHAT MUST BE DONE!"

" 'CAUSE THAT MAKES OUR GUILD NUMBER ONE!" a burst of cheering came from the staff and students alike, and they all held up their index fingers into the air, well, for those who had fingers, those who didn't simply raised their hands or paws into the air.

"Alright, my apprentices, you know the drill! Good luck!"

"YES, GUILDMASTER!"

Everyone then headed for the mess hall for breakfast. When Bolt saw it, he thought it was heaven. One large table in the back was where the staff sat, looking over the mess hall, four more smaller round tables, with supposedly four seats apiece. And food...food everywhere! piled up in seperate trays on rows of counters, some with burners keeping them warm, others in ice to keep them cool. All the different, delicious aromas at once entered Bolt's nose, making his stomach rumble and his mouth water. "OH YEAH! CHOW TIME!" he shouted, and zipped off to the nearest counter. Flare sat down at a table from the others, trying to keep her composure. Bolt joined her as soon as he had a heaping mountain of food balancing on his tray and started eating. Everyone stared at the shinx, who was now stuffing his face full of food.

"Uh, Bolt?" Flare said, a nervous look on her face. "You might wanna slow down a bit, people are looking at you."

" tho wut?" Bolt retorted, muffled by the food in his cheeks. then he took a big swallow and started shoveling more food in.

"It's kinda rude to eat that way, you know. Have you any manners?" the snivy from before said as she sat with them. "I'm Ivy by the way."

"N-nice to meet you, Ivy. I'm Flare."

"Yeah, same here. Name's Bolt"

"GUILDMASTERRRR!" came a loud shout, and everyone turned to the source, Razor the sneasel. "I CHALLENGE YOU TO A FIGHT! ME AND MY BOYS VS YOU!" The room fell so silent, you could hear a pin drop. Lucario smirked as he eyed his challengers. "COME ON! WHAT ARE YOU, CHICKEN?!"

"Alright, I'll have some fun with you." Lucario chuckled as he stood up, turning to Delphox, his second in command. "Honey, do you mind setting up the arena?"

"Of course not, dearest" Delphox replied, and pressed a button on their table. A section of blank flooring slid open, and a Boxing ring of sorts slid up from under it. Bolt and Flare stared as Lucario and Team Darkstorm entered the ring. Ivy and the rest just watched with amused looks on their faces, as if this were a dinner theater. As they got into their positions, Lucario just stood there, hands behind his back in a rather casual stance. The challengers got into their stances, and a second later, the bell rang.

Razor was the first to attack. He charged straight for Lucario, a slash attack ready. But Lucario easily caught the attack in two of his knuckles. He then whirled Razor around in one of his arms while blocking an attack from Croc with the other. Then he hurled the dizzy sneasel straight up, where he faceplanted the ceiling, sinking into the stone from the impact. Then he seemed to vanish as Croc lashed out again from beneath, and, by simply passing him, knocked Croc out with extremespeed. Shadow tried using shadow ball from behind, but Lucario saw it coming and lazily evaded the attack. Then he fired a dragon pulse at Shadow, sending him flying out of the ring, and into the wall on the other side of the room. _Strange..._ the guildmaster thought, looking around the ring. _It appears one of the four is missing..._Just then, Paladin burst out of Croc's burrow, trying to use metal claw. Lucario evaded, and fired an aura sphere at Paladin, who was quick and smart enough to leap back into the burrow as it passed over. It was now or never, he decided, so he charged forth, ariel ace ready for use. But the moment Lucario passed him, he froze, and fell over, fist imprints all over his body. Close combat. Lucario had won.

Flare and Bolt stared at the middle-aged Lucario with their jaws practically touching the table as he made his way back to the staff table, and as Audino carted the flattened team to the clinic. "This happens almost every other day. The idiots think their hot stuff because they constantly challenge the guildmaster, only to be swept aside." Ivy explained. "Truth is, only Paladin out of all of us has ever lasted more than ten seconds against the guildmaster. That makes him among the strongest of our ranks." Bolt and Flare still stared at their powerful new teacher, who didn't even break a sweat.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Well, that was rather fun." Delphox said as she walked up to Team Thunderblaze. "Would you two mind coming with me for the time being? There are some things we must discuss." She led them down to the main Lobby, then straight towad the back of the tower, where a pair of large, iron doors were. She opened them, and beckoned them inside. "Honey, they're here." She told the meditating Lucario. He opened his eyes and smiled.

The chamber was massive. twin springs sided a large marble path, with occasional fountains and pillars. At the back, a large alter made of the same polished marble was carved, with two statues on either end, guarding the stairway. On the back of the alter, a throne of silver. The sight of this room took the duo's breath away. "Thank you Delphox. I'll take them from here." He said. She nodded and left the room. "As for you two, come here a minute." He walked back toward the rear of the alter and opened a chest. He took out a bag and a pair of badges before turning back to the shinx and vulpix. "I have a few essential items i need to give you before you can do any assignments. For one thing, your explorer badges. These badges show that you're an official, registered explorer. I had my messenger, Swellow, notify the exploration team federation, and they sent me this in exchange. Just arrived this morning actually. Anyways, wear them with pride, as my old guildmaster taught me." He handed them each a badge. "Second, your treasure bag. Never leave without it, or leave with it being empty. Always keep this bag with you, like your badge. Also, I added a little something as a start in there. Go ahead and see for yourself." He handed them the bag, which they opened. Inside was a rare crimson scarf, and an azure bow.

"Wow, our own accesories!" Flare said, eyes sparkling in awe. Bolt took out the crimson scarf and tied it around his neck, pinning the badge on it when he finished.

"How do I look?" He asked, doing a pose. "Pretty awesome, I bet."

"Well, it looks a bit goofy on you, but red does seem to look good on you." Flare said, trying to keep her laughter to a minimum.

"The Crimson scarf boosts attack and speed, and the Azure bow sp. attack and sp. defense. You can only wear one accessory at a time, however. So choose wisely. That's all. My wife and second in command will teach you about our available facilities, and about the town. She's waiting for you outside. Yo are dismissed." Bolt and Flare walked out of the room, and reunited with Delphox.

"Right then, come along." She beckoned. "And no dilly-dally." She led them into the main hall, between the lobby and the guildmaster's hall. Two booths that were empty before were now occupied by three pokemon. On the other side was a long bulletin board covered in papers. "To our left are the three services offered here at the Lucario Guild. Abra runs the team assembly, which is in charge of managing your team and party. You see, as you progress through your adventures, some pokemon may want to join your team. They may, but they cannot stay here at the guild like the core members. They must find their own lodging outside. Abra's job is to fetch them when you wish to add them to your current party. Over at that longer booth is Houndoom and his wife, Mightyena."

"Wow, there's a lot of relationships in this guild." Bolt remarked. "You and Lucario, These two, and I heard the Chefs are triplet brothers."

"It's true." Delphox replied. "They've never been apart before. Anyways, Houndoom may seem like he has a rough personality, but he's a close friend of the guildmaster's, and a retired explorer. He runs the Swap shop. there, you can trade certain sets of items for rarer items that you can use. Mightyena runs the recycling shop, where you can trade in items you don't want for other items. She also gives away tickets for her lottery game. If you're lucky, you could win something big. Now I'm sure you've met our nurse, Audino. And the three sage brothers are probably busy cooking, so that ends the tour of the guild i suppose."

"Thank you, Mrs. Delphox." Flare said, bowing her head politely.

"My pleasure dear. If ever you need anything, Don't hesitate to ask." She then walked off, then paused. "Oh. maybe i should give you a tour of Cumula Town too..." she thought out loud.

"I can give Bolt a tour, ma'am. I know it well enough." Flare offered.

"Oh, well, I'm quite honestly relieved to hear that. Thank you, Flare." She smiled.

"You're welcome. Come on, Bolt, let's go!" The two of them ran across the drawbridge and down the hill. Soon, the small village came in sight, and they slowed down to catch their breath. "Well, here we are. Welcome to Cumula Town." As they walked through the streets, a few Pokemon played a lively tune in the town square, which some Pokemon danced to. Several shops lined the streets, each with a different look and owner. And that peaceful feeling...Bolt thought he'd never forget it.

"So over here is the Duskull bank, where you can store money and keep it safe. You can earn it by completing requests, selling items, or finding it in dungeons. More on that later. Over here is the Kecleon Mart, with it's many wares for sale. From berries, to food, to TMs, It's all here. The selection of items changes every day, so it's a good idea to check it every once in a while. Over there is the Chansey Day Care, which takes care of eggs until they hatch. I love visiting to see the baby Pokemon, though if I had an egg, I would hatch it myself. Over there is Machoke's Dojo. Over here is Xatu's Appraisal, where Xatu can open up chests found in dungeons for a fee, and give you the item within it. As for the others, they're from traveling salesmen who come by here to sell their wares."

Bolt looked over each building pointed out. "So these are the buildings i should remember?" Flare nodded. "Okay. Thanks for the tour. You really know a lot."

"What else are friends for?" Flare responed, smiling at Bolt.

"HEEEEYY!" a voice shouted above them. Before they looked up, a Swellow swooped down in front of them and landed. "Mistress Delphox wishes to see you two in the main hall." She stated, then flew off, as fast as she arrived.

"So much for the short break." Bolt said with a sigh.

"I guess she's sending us on our first assignment?" Flare wondered.

"Either way...RACE YA THERE!" Bolt said, taking off in a head start before Flare could respond.

" HEY, NO FAIR!" Flare called after him, trying to keep up.


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Ah, there you are." Delphox said pleasantly as she spotted the two rookies. "Now I presume you know why you're here. I'm about to assign you your first assignment as apprentices of Lucario's guild. According to guild tradition, I select your first mission unless the guildmaster's available. But given how busy he usually is meditating, I usually get the task. And also according to tradition, you will be chaperoned by one of the more experienced guild members. This is the guildmaster's and my son, Auros." She pointed to a Riolu wearing a necklace and black vest. "Now let's see..." She looked over the bulletin board carefully. "It should be an E-rank for a start. But what to choose...? Ah! here's a nice one to start with." She plucked a mission off the board with psychic, and it floated into Bolt's paws. He and Flare read over it carefully:

_"Please save my poor baby! He's lost somewhere in Rock Slide Ravine! I'll pay anything to see him safe and sound!"_

The two were silent for a moment. then they looked to each other and nodded. "I guess we're going to Rock Slide Ravine?" Bolt asked.

"That's where he is, according to the description." Flare responded. "Oh, wait, Rock Slide Ravine's a mystery dungeon."

"A what?" Bolt had never heard of the term before now. Apparently Flare understood this, and broke out into explanation.

"Mystery dungeons are very strange places, and many can be very dangerous." She said. "The dungeons change every time you go into them, giving infinite possibilities on what each floor will be structured like. Each dungeon has a set number of floors, which one can advance through by finding the floor's stairs. But the dungeons are chock full of aggressive Pokemon. So you should always go in prepared to fight. Otherwise, you'll get knocked out, sent back to the start of the dungeon (Or the last checkpoint you passed), and have some of your items and half your money confiscated."

"My, you certainly know quite a lot." Delphox remarked. "Well, what she says is true, it's pretty dangerous going into a mystery dungeon. But the rewards are well worth the effort. From loot found in dungeons to the rewards of the jobs, there is plenty to gain from the experience. But just as much to lose. So be careful, you two. And Auros, help them only if they need it. No showing off."

"Yes, ma'am!" Team Thunderblaze and Auros said, and they took off, on their way on the first of their many adventures as a team.

Soon, they reached the entrance of the dungeon. It was a huge ravine filled with fallen rocks. The rock walls of the ravine were red from the sun constantly beating down on them, and some of the rocks, Bolt thought, moved. "Okay. Let's go over the details one more time." Flare said, taking the mission description out again. "We're looking for a baby eevee who's at the end of the dungeon."

"Right." Bolt said, still looking at the rocks he thought he saw move. "I can suspect rock-types in this place, given the name."

"You're not foolin' anyone." Auros chuckled. "You saw rocks moving, that's why. Well, good thing you got this charming fighting-type on your side." He gave Flare his 'trademark' dashing smile. Flare blushed a bit, and looked away. But Bolt met her glance with a smug grin.

"You like him, don't you?" He asked.

"NO! We only just met!" Flare snapped. She then turned her head away from him and went into the dungeon. Auros followed beside Bolt. Not long after the first floor, Auros whispered into Bolt's ear.

"You think I have a chance to score with her?" He asked. Flare's ears twitched. She glared back at Auros, who stood up straight nervously.

"Maybe." Bolt whispered back. "Even if she denies it, there's no doubt she blushed back there. We'll just have to see."

At this, a stream of embers hit Bolt's tail, igniting it. " AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT-!" He ran around in circles, fire and smoke streaming from his tail, then leaped into a nearby pool of water. With a sigh of relief, he rejoined the others, and they continued, this time Flare in the back so she can keep an eye on them. At floor 3, Auros backed up to Flare's side.

"You know, I like the way your hair looks. Those delicate bangs, that cute little curl on top, only adds to your already smokin' hot look."

"If you like this hairstyle, you should try it. It'll improve your look a bit." She joked in reply. Bolt let out a snicker, causing Flare to smile appreciatively, and Auros to give a warning glance at Bolt.

"Sorry, Auros, but you just got BURNED!" They made their way silently through floor 4, taking down enemies as they went. Auros truly showed talent in fighting, as he took out one foe after another with ease. Bolt made good use of his moveset as well. Despite his only damaging move at the moment, tackle, wasn't the most effective against rock types, a good leer helped add in a bit of extra damage by lowering the foe's defense. And Vulpix's ember did well against the foe too, given some rock types had poor special defense, and she could strike from a distance before they got to her. Soon both had leveled up. "Whoa, what just happened?! I felt all tingly. Like something powered me up!"

"It means you went up a level, Bolt." Flare said, her six tails spreading out behind her as she sat down. "When you level up, your stats increase and you get a chance of learning a new move. I'm sure you'll get used to it after a few more level ups."

"You forgot to mention something, babe." Auros said, causing Flare to once again give him a warning glare. He closed his eyes and started lecturing. "Each pokemon has different strengths and weaknesses in stats. For instance, my attack increases a lot upon leveling up, but my defenses not so much. Working on that. You, as a shinx, will also get a high attack boost. Also, some accesories can increase certain stat boosts. For instance, Bolt, that crimson bandana you're wearing around your neck will help you increase your attack and speed. And hottie, not only does that azure ribbon look good on ya, it boosts your sp. attack and sp. defense growth." He got so caught up in this lecture however, he failed to notice that Bolt and Flare had gone ahead. When he opened his eyes, he looked around. "Guys? WAIT UP!" He ran after them. He found them in the corridor ahead with the stairs, fighting a shieldon. Auros jumped into the action and used force palm, sending the rock type sky-rocketing. Unfortunately, it hit a few loose rocks and caused a rock slide.

"RUN FOR COVER!" Bolt yelled over the noise, and ran for a crevice in the ravine walls. Auros followed him, but Flare wasn't so lucky and tripped. Bolt and Auros were about to run out of the crevice, but the rocks came tumbling down, burying her in stone. Bolt made to run out, but Auros grabbed his tail.

"Wait, you moron! You'll get crushed if you go out there now!"

"Get off me!" Bolt snapped, and kicked himself free of the riolu's grasp, running along with the rocks to find Flare. He found her unconscious on the ground and pulled her out of the path of another boulder. Then he lay over her, shielding her from the tumbling rocks, and slowly made his way toward a small ditch in the ground. He threw Flare in first, and then jumped in. Soon, the rocks had passed, and fallen to the bottom of the rise. Auros searched for them, grumbling about how much of an idiot Bolt is until he found them.

"You're lucky to be alive, you reckless moron!" Auros said.

"Would you rather I had left her to die?!" Bolt shot back. The two of them argued until Flare woke up. Then, after giving her an oran berry they found on the way, they set off again. After reaching the stairs, they found their missing pokemon. A baby eevee was crying in the clearing for his parents. He then noticed the explorers, and looked at them timidly.

"AAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!" Flare squealed, her eyes turning into pink hearts. "HE'S SO CUUUUUUTE!" She ran right up to him and started cuddling the confused eevee.

"Eev?" the little fox pokemon cooed questioningly.

"Uh, hello? gotta take the kid back home to his parents!" Auros reminded Flare.

"Right, right." Flare said. She let the eevee go. "Come on, Eevee. Let's take you to your mommy and daddy." The eevee cheered at this, bouncing around with joy. This caused Flare to squeal louder with adoration, Bolt to smile, and Auros to roll his eyes, but smirk. They led him out of the dungeon, and back to the guild. The mother Espeon and father Umbreon were overjoyed to see their baby unharmed.

"Thank you so much, explorers! We can't repay you enough for what you've done for us!" Espeon cried.

"We are in your debt." Umbreon agreed. "No doubts there."

"Aw, it was nothing" Bolt said with a large grin.

"Just be sure to keep a close eye on him now." Flare advised.

"Does he have a hot sister my age i could date?" Auros asked, causing Flare to hit him on the head. "OW! I WAS KIDDING!"

"Well, no..." Espeon said, looking at Auros oddly. "But how's this for a reward?" She handed out 10,000 P, a reviver seed, and a max elixir. "Thanks again for everything!" Eevee looked admiringly at the team. _When I grow up, I wanna be like them!_

"Well done, Team Thunderblaze" Lucario said as he approached them. "Now hand the money over."

"WHAT?!" Bolt shouted, his grin vanishing instantly. "But we earned it fair and square!"

"The guild rules states that the guild receives 90% of the money to pay for the things it needs to operate. Consider it paying your rent." Lucario explained. Bolt couldn't argue with that. Reluctantly, he handed over the money, and the team was given 1,000 P to split between them. Bolt still sulked a bit, but was satisfied that he had done something worth doing. And as soon as dinner was called, He raced to the mess hall with Flare to get some food.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Along the days that followed, Bolt and Flare adjusted to their new life at the guild. Each morning, Excadrill, the sentry, would wake everyone up with a fanfare he played every morning at sunrise. It was a pleasant tune to wake up to, and it almost always worked. Key word there being, almost. Bolt always slept through the fanfare, so Flare had to wake him up herself, which wasn't easy for her. Bolt was probably the heaviest sleeper she'd ever seen, and the only way to wake him, she learned, was by using his tail as a candle. He didn't really like this idea, but he appreciated that she woke him up, at least. after that was the morning announcements and the guild creed, followed by breakfast. Flare would get the gossip from the girls around the guild, and Bolt would eat a mountain of food, tell jokes to those who would listen, and pull pranks on the unsuspecting. Once he slipped a super-spicy tomato berry into Razor's berry salad, and he had to spend the day in the clinic with an ice pack on his tongue. Another time, he swapped foods around people's plates while they weren't looking, only to get a look at their confused and shocked faces when their apple or orange was replaced by the other. Yet another time, he put glue on Auros's seat, and the riolu had to waddle everywhere with a chair stuck to his butt.

Soon they got to know everyone in the guild and what they were like. Auros was a ladies' man and a hard worker, and the guildmaster's son and part of Team Aurastorm, conisting of him, a zany female pikachu named Emma, and a Zorua named Zorro. Team Unova consisted of a brainiac tepig named Koal, a surfer oshawott named Riptide, and the snivy they met earlier, the serious Ivy. Team Darkstorm was the typical bully group, except for Paladin, a quiet type who spoke only when he thought necesarry. No one really knew about him. But it was clear he had a strong sense of honor, despite it faltering at times. Dillon the Sandshrew and Rocky the Geodude, Team Terrafirma, were the Hans and Franz of the group, obsessed with exercise. Team Flora was basically the cheerleader team. Each member, Leaf the chikorita, Clover the oddish, and Bloom the floette, was perky, happy, and optimistic.

The sage bros, the chefs, all enjoyed their work and it's results. They were the best cooks in town, and no one denied that. Guildmaster Lucario was wise and calm, even in the heat of battle. Usually, Team Darkstorm would challenge him, and he would beat them. Bolt even challenged him once to a one-on-one. You can probably guess how that turned out. Delphox was very motherly to the members, but also very strict when it came to rule-breaking. Bolt learned that firsthand when he snuck dead bugs into her shampoo one night. Audino was the guild Nurse, and was kind, caring, and determined. Swellow was gentle, but if you got her mad, run for the hills! Abra usually slept, naturally, so no one knew about him. Houndoom did have a rough personality, and he showed aggresion in more ways than one at times, but deep down, Flare thought, he surely had a soft spot, specifically for his wife, Mightyena, who was very good and loyal. Castform was probably the only pokemon in the guild who had no clear personality. He was like a machine, almost. Excadrill was chivalrous and gentleman-like. To the point of almost sounding like a butler.**  
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"BOLT! GET OVER HERE RIGHT NOW!" That scream of rage from Razor woke everyone up at day 10 for the new duo. They looked out their doors to find Razor dangling from a snare that Bolt set to go off as soon as their door was open. "I KNOW YOU HEAR ME, YOU LITTLE HAIRBALL HACKER!"

"Mornin', Razor." Bolt moaned tiredly as he walked up to where Razor was hanging. "What is..." He looked up and saw Razor, then burst out laughing. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! How's it 'hanging', huh? I can't believe you fell for one of the oldest tricks in the book!"

"SHUT UP, THUNDER BREATH!" Razor roared. "AND GET ME DOWN FROM HERE!"

"Your insults are worse than your temper." Bolt said casually, a mischievous smirk on his face. "Anyways, I dunno about letting you down. You never were nice to me or Flare...or anyone for that matter." He sat down and looked up at his victim. "But maybe if you ask nicely, I'll lend you a hand."

"Ah, screw this! CROC! SHADOW! FRONT AND CENTER!" Croc and Shadow zipped out of the room, then looked around. "UP HERE YOU DUNDERHEADS!" He screamed. "GET ME DOWN!"

"Sure, boss." Croc said with his deep voice. " Hey, Shad. Lend me a boost?"

"After last time?" Shadow asked "I don't think so. You weigh a ton!" He snickered.

"WHAT'D YOU SAY?! YOU CALLIN' ME FAT?!" Croc roared.

"MAYBE I AM!" Shadow shot back. and they got into a fight.

"JUST GET THE STUPID SHINX TO DO IT, MORONS!" Razor screeched, pointing down at a white, dotted, blinking outline of the shinx that was no longer there. "WHAT?! WHERE'D THAT TWERP GO?!"

"He said something about breakfast." Paladin said, standing cross-armed in the doorway to their room.

"GO AFTER HIM, AND DRAG HIS SORRY BLACK BUTT BACK HERE!" Razor ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Croc and Shadow said, then dashed off, leaving Razor and Paladin.

"So, Paladin, mind lending me a hand? or blade? get it?" Razor asked. Paladin just turned and walked off to the mess hall. " WHAT, FOR REAL?!"


	9. Chapter 7(part 2)

**Chapter 7(part 2)**

The mess hall was as lively as ever when Bolt entered the place. The cooks noticed his entering and started picking up the pace, knowing that the shinx was about to once again beat eating records. The usual battle between Team Darkstorm and guildmaster Lucario was going on, and already three of them were knocked out. Now Paladin was trying his best to evade all of the guildmaster's attacks, waiting for an opening. He found one and went for it as he evaded an extreme speed, but he wound up being knocked flat on his back by a follow-up aura sphere.

As Team Flora escorted the defeated team to the clinic, Bolt sat down with Flare, Ivy, Auros, Emma, and Zorro. Paladin walked up to them, causing Flare to cast a worried look over at a slightly glaring Bolt. "It's okay, guys" Auros assured. "Doesn't look like he's up to anything." The two relaxed just a bit, but mentally stayed on guard. Paladin sat down with them, and nodded as a greeting. After a long moment of silence, Paladin finally spoke up.

"I'm sorry about what occurred that day at the lake." he said "I was put under a hypnosis by shadow before the event, so my actions were against my will. Again, I apologize."

"If you weren't responsible, there's nothing to be sorry about" Bolt said through a mouthful of food. Then he swallowed and continued eating. Just then, Excadrill, the sentry, came in with an injured clefairy. "We have trouble!" he shouted. "This clefairy collapsed right on our drawbridge! she's alive, but that's not the worst part." Audino worked on healing the clefairy while Lucario questioned Excadrill. The room was silent as they watched the commotion. About five minutes later, Clefairy woke up. Lucario approached her calmly and steadily.

"Wh-where am I?" she asked. "What's going on?!"

"It's okay, you're safe" Lucario assured her. "What happened to you?"

"I-I was walking with my little brother, Cleffa, through Frost Forest, but...CLEFFA! IS HE HERE TOO?!"

"I'm sorry, but no." Lucario said in response. "You were alone when we found you."

" OH NO OH NO OH NO! CLEFFA! HE'S IN TROUBLE! I GOTTA SAVE HIM!" Clefairy cried desperately, but the moment she stood, her leg gave way, casing her to fall over again. "CLEFFA! I'M COMING!"

"Calm down, miss." Audino said. "We'll find him, don't worry. So what happened next?"

"W-we were attacked by a pair of bisharps, and I got knocked out!" Clefairy whimpered before bursting into tears. "AND NOW CLEFFA'S EITHER DEAD OR KIDNAPPED! THIS IS ALL MY FAULT!" she sobbed.

"Well, I'm not gonna let this happen!" Bolt said, "I'll hunt these bisharps down and bring your brother back alive! I swear!"

"Th-thank you...Thank you..." Clefairy said through tears. Bolt began packing what he could for the trip, as clefairy continued her story. "So these bisharps both have a yin-yang on their forehead. One is bulky with a black cape, the other is somewhat slim with a white cape." The guild stared at this.

"Y-YOU DON'T MEAN THE INFAMOUS BISHARP BROS, MASE AND MUNE, DO YOU?!" Audino shouted. Clefairy nodded.

"Thanks for the extra info." Bolt remarked as he walked toward the doorway. "I'll make sure to give them a good walloping for ya!" But before he left the guild, Lucario picked him up by his bag. "HEY, WHAT GIVES?! LEMME GO!"

"Bolt, this isn't a mission you can do, let alone by yourself." Lucario stated. "Mase and Mune are both A+ class criminals. Known for destroying anyone who gets in their way, and a supposed secret technique that no one has seen and lived."

"But that cleffa is in danger! Aren't we supposed to help any pokemon in need?!"

"Bolt..." Flare said. "Those guys are out of our league. We need to rely on a more elite-classed team to do this assignment."

"NO ONE ASKED YOU, FLARE!" Bolt snapped. All the frustration he kept bottled up in him secretly, ever since he became a pokemon, had finally shot out of him. "SO MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!"

"It kind of is my business given we're on the same team!" Flare shot back. "I don't want you getting hurt, Bolt. You're a good person, and-"

"AND YOU'RE NOT MY KEEPER! SO BUZZ OFF!" Bolt fumed.

"FINE!" Flare shouted "YOU'RE SUCH A STUBBORN BRAT!" She ran off before Bolt could respond.

"You're not going, Bolt. Your rank isn't high enough anyways." Lucario said after a long hush. "I forbid you." Bolt pouted as the guildmaster left for his room to meditate.

The day passed on as Flare and Bolt did seperate jobs around the guild, obviously not over that argument yet. Ivy tried to calm Flare down, and Auros tried to chat with Bolt, but with no avail.

When dinner came, the guild noticed the food trays were fuller than usual, overflowing even. And when they ate, there was no tower of food on any table. Bolt wasn't at dinner. This was rather odd for a shinx who seemed to love food so much. Ivy immediately went over to where Flare was eating by herself. "Flare, do you know where Bolt could be?" She asked.

"I'm not his keeper" Flare said, imitating Bolt's voice as best she could. "Haven't seen him all day since that fight."

"You don't think...maybe he left the guild?" Ivy wondered. Flare's heart skipped a beat. She stared worriedly at the front hall outside the mess hall. Soon, though her eyes met something else: Razor, who was running in with a panicked look on his face.

"GUILDMASTER! IT'S BOLT! HE JUST LEFT THE TOWN!" he said. Lucario stopped eating and froze with a look of disbelief on his face, then ran into the front hall, right to the billboards. Sure enough, the Bisharp Bros mission was missing, torn off. It was clear now where Bolt had gone...


	10. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Snowflakes drifted down over the pine trees of Frost Forest, landing on the branches and ground, and some on Bolt. He trudged through knee-deep snow, shivering as the cold in the air pierced his fur and drilled into his bone marrow. _I had a feeling I should have brought something for this cold._ he thought to himself, _Way to go, Bolt. You forgot to bring a winter coat to a place called Frost Forest._ _Real smart! _Bolt had made his way through two of the dungeon's 8 floors, and at this point he knew this would be a much harder trip than Rockslide Ravine.

"Well," Bolt said to himself, looking up."At least the sky looks pretty." hundreds of stars twinkled down at him, giving Bolt a fair amount of cheerfulness, but that didnt last long either. Eventually, Bolt gave up trying to use the stars to cheer himself up and got back to focusing on his mission...and staying warm. The weather was freezing, but he had to save Cleffa. He wanted to prove to guildmaster Lucario that he could do this. As he entered a clearing in the forest, the moon and stars' light seemed to reflect off the snow on the ground, giving a silver glow to it. Bolt looked around for anything to eat or any threats. When no aggressive pokemon was found, he sat down and opened his bag, hoping to find food, but instead found the whole bag empty. Without knowing it, he had eaten all of his berries and food.

Bolt let out a sigh, and was about to resume, until he heard something coming his way. Immediately he jumped up to his feet in a crouched position, ready for whatever it was. Two snovers and a cubchoo leaped out of the clearing at Bolt. Bolt evaded and used tackle on the cubchoo. "All right, come on!" He said to his foes. They responded with a triple powder snow attack, taking quite a chunk out of the shinx's hp. Bolt got up and was ready to use tackle again, but one of his paws refused to budge. It was frozen to the ground! Bolt tried to free it, but took two razor leafs to the back, and collapsed. The cubchoo moved in to deal the final blow, but was knocked aside by a stream of embers. It fell over, knocked out, at the other end of the clearing. Bolt looked up to see Flare facing off with the snovers, standing between them and him. This felt familiar, he thought. Last time this happened it was with Team Darkstorm. But Bolt wasn't gonna be a helpless victim this time. With one good jerk, and some help from Flare's embers, he freed his leg and tackled one of the snovers.

The two explorers fought well together, and they had an advantage over their foes. Flare easily knocked out her snover, and Bolt managed to lay a tackle on his, knocking it out. After scanning the clearing for any more enemies, Flare went up to Bolt and smacked him across the face with her paw. "YOU IDIOT!" She yelled, smacking him over and over.

"OW OW OW! KNOCK IT OFF!" Bolt managed to say as he dodged another blow.

"WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING?! YOU KNOW YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO DO AN A-CLASS MISSION AT OUR RANK! DO YOU WANT TO GET EXPELLED?!" She shouted, frustration bursting forth. "THE GUILDMASTER'S WORRIED SICK! EVERYONE IS!"

Now it was Bolt's turn to snap. "I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF!" he shot out. "I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING! I'M SAVING A POKEMON IN DANGER!"

"THE GUILDMASTER SAID YOU WEREN'T ALLOWED TO DO THIS MISSION! THESE ARE DANGEROUS CRIMINALS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT! AND YOU JUST WENT AND DISOBEYED HIM!"

"IF YOU'RE ONLY HERE TO NAG ME ABOUT THIS, GET LOST!" Bolt roared. "I DON'T NEED YOU! I'LL DO THIS MYSELF!" Flare stared, a shocked look on her face. Then that shock turned into a mixture of anger and sadness. Bolt saw the transition and was starting to feel guilty.

"FINE! I CAN'T BELIEVE I LEFT TO LOOK FOR YOU, LET ALONE SAVE YOU! IF THAT'S THE THANKS YOU GIVE, I DON'T WANT IT!" She screamed, tears in her eyes. Then she grabbed her badge and hurled it to the ground. "I DON'T WANT TO BE IN A TEAM WITH A STUBBORN JERK LIKE YOU!" She growled, then she turned and ran off, tails trailing behind her. Bolt picked up the badge, and looked sadly in the direction Flare ran off to. Now he had done it. He had lost a friend closer than any of the other members of the guild. The first friend he made in this world. Guilt eating away at his insides, he put the badge in his bag, and turned to resume his mission, when he heard a scream coming from the direction Flare ran off. One all too familiar. Bolt's worry grew, but he tried to keep his cool. _She doesn't need me._ He thought to himself. _But..._A feeling of dread came through him, and he found himself automatically running toward the scream's source. As much of a nag she was, Bolt thought, She was still close to him. _Hang on, Flare. I'm coming. _

When Bolt thought he'd never find Flare, he did. Her paws were frozen to the ground, and her muzzle was frozen shut to prevent her from making flames. Tears streaked from her closed eyes as she bowed her head, fear in her face. She was surrounded by 13 snovers and cubchoo, each with their backs toward her. As he moved in closer, other voices were heard. "-appreciate your help in finding this rouge explorer. We promise our guildmaster will deal with her rather severely" came the voice of Razor. Razor! What's he doing here?! Bolt saw the smirking sneasel, along with croc and shadow. Paladin must have decided to stay behind, he thought. And they were talking to a Beartic and an Abomasnow, what he presumed were the chiefs of the forest.

"Good. I appreciate your help in catching them. But you said there was a shinx as well, correct?" Beartic asked. "The sooner we find him, the sooner we can bring the two to justice for their crimes." Abomasnow nodded with a grunt. Crimes? Bolt knew he and Flare had never broken any laws. Sure, Bolt himself would break a guild rule or two, and especially did so by being here, but that didn't count as a crime. Razor was just buttering up to the two chiefs so he could have their help in getting them in trouble. Like hell he was gonna let that happen. Bolt started retreating back into the brush when he caught flare's eye looking at him. He gave her a confident look and nodded, as if to say _It's alright. I'll get you out._ He slipped back into the forest and began setting up for his big plan.

An hour later, he burst into the clearing, startling the chiefs, their men,Team Darkstorm, and even Flare. "Catch me if ya can, losers!" He taunted, standing right in front of the group around Flare, who was looking at him as if he were crazy. Before anyone made a move to grab or freeze him in his place, though, he sprinted back into the forest. He knew he could never take on so many pokemon at once in his current condition, but he was ready to bring them down. Evading, an ice beam, he dashed down a side path. The mob followed him, but weren't expecting Bolt's many tricks and traps. "Have a nice fall!" he said as the first few of the mob fell into a pit trap he had set. The rest went around it, but two were caught in snare traps. "Hope you don't mind hanging around for a bit!" More still got trapped in a net. The traps and pranks kept going until soon it was only Razor left, leaping silently through the treetops.

"It's over, Hairball Hacker!" Razor called. "Your story's coming to an end!"

"WHAT?! But we're only on chapter 8! the fans'll be pissed if the series ended here!" Bolt responded, worry and confusion in his face.

"Wait...what?" Razor said, and in his confusion, ran into a tree. Normally this would only bruise someone, or give them a bloody nose at worst. But consider for a moment a sneasel's speed. Yeah, it wouldn't be pretty if one was going top speed into a solid wood obstacle. It didn't kill him, but it knocked him out.

Flare was relieved to see him alright as he broke the ice around her muzzle, then her back paws. She thawed out her front paws, and finally, was free. The two pokemon looked awkwardly away from each other as an equally awkward silence fell over them. Finally Flare spoke up to break the silence.

"Sooo, how'd you lose them?" Flare asked, eyes lit with curiosity. Bolt just gave her his trademark "Devil's smile" smirk, the same smirk he wears every time he makes mischief. She understood right away.

"But never mind me, they didn't hurt you, did they?" Bolt asked. Flare seemed rather suprised about his question, but smiled nonetheless.

"No, I'm fine..." She said, then more awkward silence. Finally Bolt let out a sigh and looked at her. She had never seen the shinx so serious-looking.

"I'm sorry about what i said. If it's not too late for me to say so, I take it back." He said. "If it weren't for you appearing right then, I would've been frozen solid, probably. I appreciate what you did, and your concern for me." Bolt was praying for a positive response, glancing hopefully toward the vulpix he wanted as a freind again. Flare was at a loss for words. He was admitting he was doing something wrong?

"So do you forgive me?" Bolt asked. "Can we be a team again?" The smile on Flare's face was the only answer he needed, and he let out a sigh of relief to finally know he was forgiven. He reached into the bag and pulled out his partner's badge. She took it without hesitation and put it on. Then the two headed deeper into the forest, to Bolt's delight, to resume their mission. After all, going back meant facing Team Darkstorm and the two ice tribes again. They set off to find the Bisharp Bros, and bring them down.


	11. Chapter 8(part 2)

**Chapter 8(part 2)**

"Come on, Bolt, can't we rest a bit?" Flare complained she and her partner walked across the snow covered ground. "We're on the last floor, so it wouldn t hurt to get our bearings."

"But how much time do you think we have?" Bolt asked Flare "We need to find Cleffa quick. We've been detoured enough."

"That's not my fault, I hope you know." Flare protested.

"Well..." Bolt began, but saw the look on Flare's face and stopped. After a while of walking through the forest, Bolt sighed. "Alright. When we reach the stairs, we can rest. Deal?" Flare nodded in response. Then Bolt looked back to the front and glanced side to side. It would be so much easier for him to focus..._If it weren't for this freezing weather!_ Bolt griped in his head. It's not that he hated cold places, but this place was especially cold. Bolt thought having a fur coat meant he didn't need to wear a jacket anymore, yet here he was, trying to keep his composure while shivering like crazy inside. Then he glanced over his shoulder at Flare, who was absent-mindedly looking up at the sky. She didn't seem cold at all. _Of course she isn't cold._ Bolt thought. _She's a fire type._ Flare caught his glance.

"What?" She asked.

"How are you not cold?" Bolt asked. "Is it because of you being a fire type or something?" Flare just shrugged in response, then she noticed him shivering violently, and understood why he asked. She let out a sigh, then opened the bag she had made of stitched-together leaves and spinarak thread. She took out a light blue winter cloak and passed it to Bolt, who immediately put it on.

"Ahhhhh...so warm..." Bolt said with a goofy grin with a hint of relief on his face. Flare couldn't help but giggle a bit, causing Bolt to look away a bit nervously, his cheeks feeling warm. He resumed leading until finally they reached the clearing with the staircase. "Alright, I've only got one apple and two oran berries. how about you?"

"Three apples" Flare responded. She had picked them up while searching for Bolt in the dungeon.

"Alright, two apples each then?" Bolt asked. She shifted one apple to Bolt, and they ate, Bolt finishing his meal in a second. Flare rolled her eyes as Bolt sighed with relief yet again.

"Bolt, did you even come prepared for this mission?" She asked the shinx. "Did you pack any food or supplies?"

"Heh heh...funny story about that. You see I...kinda ate all my food at the first two floors. Berries included." Bolt said, a sheepish look on his face.

"Idiot."

"HEY! IF IT WEREN'T FOR ME, YOU'D STILL BE A PRISONER RIGHT NOW!"

After they had finished resting and arguing, they set off for their target. As they entered the final clearing, they saw Cleffa, tied up and blindfolded, laying in the middle of the field. "Looks like the Bisharp Bros aren't here right now. Perfect." Bolt said. "All we have to do is grab Cleffa and get outta here before they come back. Piece o' cake."

"Hold on, this is too easy." Flare whispered, "This might be a trap. It's one of the oldest tricks in the...Bolt?" She looked around and saw Bolt running up to Cleffa at top speed. "GET BACK HERE YOU IDIOT!" She yelled frantically.

"DON'T CALL ME AN IDIOT!" Bolt yelled back. Then a night slash hit him, sending him tumbling back. A bisharp in a white cloak, a yin-yang on his forehead, was standing in front of Cleffa.

"What is it, Mune?" a voice called out.

"Someone's after our ransom, that's what." Mune responded. "And from the looks of it, explorers." A second bisharp with the same yin-yang on his head, but bulkier and in a black cloak stepped out of the clearing,grinning. Bolt stood his ground as he got up.

"And just who do you think you are?" He asked, slightly irritated.

"Shall we, brother Mase?" Mune looked to his brother

"Indeed we shall, Mune." Mase confirmed.

"MASE, THE POWEFUL!"

"MUNE, THE SWIFT!"

"AND TOGETHER WE ARE...THE MASE-MUNE! THE YIN-YANG! THE BISHARP BROS!" They roared with pride, doing a pose. Bolt just remained silent, staring at the two bisharps. Then he fell over laughing his head off.

"HEY!" Mase snapped. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE COWERING IN FEAR, NOT LAUGHING!"

"Sorry, sorry..." Bolt sighed, trying to stop as he wiped a tear from his eye "It's just that I've never seen a funnier pair of clowns. You two would make a great sideshow."

"...Let's kill him." Mune said. Mase nodded in agreement and charged at Bolt. Mune seemed to vanish as he tore across the ground at breakneck speed. Bolt leaped back, avoiding Mase's iron head attack, but Mune used metal claw, slashing bolt from behind. Unfortunately for Mune, he didn't slow down fast enough to avoid Flare's ember attack. Bolt hit Mase with a spark attack, sending him staggering back a bit and Flare laid another ember into his face.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! MY EEEYEES!" Mase screamed, holding his eyes. Bolt saw the opportunity and used charge to strengthen his next spark. Mune slashed at Flare before she could react, and vanished again. Flare tried to keep up, but Mune was just too fast. _Come on, Flare, THINK! _she shouted in her head. She carefully observed her opponent's movement, searching for an opening, or a weakness. _That's it!_ She used ember straight ahead, and Mune ran into it.

"Two flaws" Flare said with a smirk

"What are you talking about?!" Mune shouted, glaring at the small vulpix.

"There are two flaws you have to your speedy style of fighting." Flare explained. Mune roared out with rage and charged right at her, Flare waited, and then jumped aside at the last second, causing Mune to slam into the tree behind her. "One is that even though you have great speed, you can't control it well. You don't slow down very easily." Flare then used ember on Mune, knocking down a quite a chunk of his stamina. "Second. You traded your defenses for this attack andspeed, so they're not very high, making you a glass cannon." Mune growled in response, and struggled to get to his feet before vanishing, having taken off to where Bolt had hit Mase with a much stronger spark, Sending the larger, bulky bisharp off his feet. Mase growled angrily and his yin-yang mark glowed as he hit the ground with tremendous force, sending a shock wave all around him and knocking bolt off the ground. He then leaped into the air and delivered a diving iron head to Bolt, who managed to evade, but was again pushed back by the force.

_This guy's strength and defenses are really__ unnatural..._ He thought. _But he's awfully slow. This'll be a piece o' cake!_ Bolt ran up to the large bisharp using leer, then used spark. Mase slid back, greatly exhaused.

"RGH! These pip-squeaks are stronger than we thought." Mase said, getting back to his feet. "MUNE, IT'S TIME!"

"Indeed, brother!" Mune replied and landed beside Mase. "LET'S DO THIS!"

"MASE-MUNE...FUSE!" they shouted in unison as a bright light overcame them both, Their silhouettes merging into one before also being consumed in the light. When the light finally faded, there was no longer two bisharps. Instead, there was a massive, single Bisharp. 10.5 feet tall, Bulky, Four bladed arms. The yin-yang on it's head glowed brightly. It's helmet looked like a samurai's, with two blades on it instead of the usual one. The bisharp bros had fused together into one super-bisharp.

"Wow, that's new." Bolt said curiously. "Didn't know pokemon could fuse like that."

"They can't" A worried Flare replied."This has to be some sort of unique ability!"

The two of them got ready to fight this new foe as the blades on it's four arms extended, and he charged at them. Bolt barely had time to react before being hit with night slash, sending him flying. Flare tried to use ember, but the fused pokemon evaded it easily and landed on Flare, pinning her to the ground. "How pathetic" It said, "For a pair of explorers, you don't put up much of a fight!" Slowly he began to press his foot harder onto Flare, causing her to yelp from pain. "I'll crush you brats like a pair of berries!" Mase/Mune laughed. The duo knew they were in for the fight of their life!


	12. Chapter 8(part 3)

**Chapter 8 (finale) **

Delphox looked worriedly out the window as her husband gave a briefing to Paladin. She only hoped that Team Thunderblaze was safe and sound. It was reckless of Bolt to just take off like that on a mission that out classes him, and even worse for Flare of all members to sneak out after him. Even Team Darkstorm snuck out, save for Paladin. But her worry was overwhelming her anger at this point. The two criminals those kids were up against... They don't stand a chance. "Alright" Lucario said as he came in. "He's on his way. Hopefully he arrives on time."

"Do you think they're okay right now?" She asked the blue canine. Lucario pondered a bit, then gave her a look of uncertainty. she understood right away.

Meanwhile in the deepest clearing of frost forest, Bolt was facing off with Mase/Mune (the two fused together into a super bisharp previously), with Flare struggling to get out from under the massive foot that pinned her to the ground. "Well?" the massive foe said, a cocky grin on his face. "Your move." In response, Bolt ran up at Mase/Mune and tried to hit him with spark, but he easily evaded the blow with a well timed leap. Unfortunately, however, they couldn't stop themselves from falling into the path of a fire spin from the now free Flare.

"Nice strategy, Bolt. Thanks for freeing me, too." She said to her partner.

"You're welcome, but what strategy?" Bolt replied. "I was aiming to hit him." Flare facepawed.

"Never mind." She said.

The two explorers charged forth. "With that fire spin intact, he can't move for a while!" Flare said "This is our one chance! Screw this up, and i don't think i could hit him again!"

"THEN LET'S MAKE THIS COUNT!" Bolt shouted, and dove right through the cyclone of fire using spark to strike Mase/Mune, then pass through the other side. Flare leaped up over the vortex of flames and uses ember from above. The two of them kept attacking with their STAB moves, striking from all angles, so Mase/Mune couldn't tell where they were. "THIS ENDS NOW, BISHARP BROS!" Bolt said as he dove down at them, activating spark once more and spinning like a top. The impact was enough to split the fusion between the twin brothers, and soon, they were two normal bisharps again. With a roar of courage, Bolt charged in to finish them off, Flare at his side, but something sped past them and used night slash, knocking out both brothers in one blow. Paladin had finally found them.

After tying up the defeated bisharp bros, Paladin turned to Team Thunderblaze. "Don't you realize how much trouble you're in?" He asked calmly. Both Bolt and Flare hung their heads in shame, remembering they broke guild rules and disobeyed Guildmaster Lucario. Bolt felt even worse because he had gotten Flare into trouble with him because of his stupidity and stubbornness. "Regardless, I will say I'm impressed. To think the ones who would finally bring the infamous Bisharp Bros to justice would be two rookie explorer kids." An amused twinkle met his eyes as he looked at the two. "Now, let's head back to the guild. You come along too, Cleffa. Your big sister's waiting for you. Bolt had almost forgotten Cleffa was there. He was so quiet, you'd think he had already left. As they walked back to the guild, Cleffa kept staring admirably at the two explorers that saved him, Making Bolt feel uncomfortable, but pleased. _At least I did one thing right._ He thought to himself.

The next morning at the guild, Excadrill didn't need to use his fanfare to wake everyone up. Lucario Was already doing so with his yelling. "YOU COULD'VE BEEN KILLED! DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT?!" he shouted. "IF IT WEREN'T FOR PALADIN, YOU NEVER WOULD'VE MADE IT OUTTA THERE ALIVE!"

"A-actually, guildmaster" Bolt stammered, with a nervous smile on his face "We had it covered before Paladin arrived. He just dealt the last blow."

"That's true, sir." Paladin agreed. "Technically, the credit goes to those two." Lucario seemed to calm down a bit. He took a deep breath, then turned back to the team with a more gentle appearance.

"Listen, kids. We were worried about you. Delphox, Me, the whole guild. Sometimes you gotta trust those around you, even if you can't make sense of our intentions. As noble as your intentions were, I still have to punish you two for breaking guild rules. So you two have to clean up the mess hall after meals for a week. And that includes dishes and the kitchen."

"Yes, Guildmaster." They said in unison, still looking ashamed. They trudged out of Lucario's room, passing by Razor, Kroc, and Shadow as the trio of troublemakers headed in to face Lucario as well. As they entered the guild's mess hall, they ran into Clefairy and Cleffa, who thanked them for the 50th time. This cheered them up a bit, and when they actually went into the mess hall, everyone was cheering for them. They heard of Team Thunderblaze's feat, and admired them for it. They were only rookies, and already they've risen to a new height. This really lifted the weight off their hearts and souls, and soon, Bolt and Flare were laughing and talking with the others just as they had for the two weeks they've been in the guild. After breakfast, Bolt and Flare compromised a way to get their job done faster. They decided to swap each mealtime between kitchen and mess hall. Bolt got the first shift in the kitchen...and almost fainted at the sight of the mountain of dishes in the sink and really messed up counters. It would take a while, that was for certain.


	13. Interlude 1

**Interlude**

Far away from Cumula town, a single figure walked through Frost Forest in a black cloak. Only his glowing red eyes, and a strange black pattern in them, were visible under the hood. As he walked, he heard a twig snap behind him, and froze in his tracks. "HEY PUNK! THIS IS OUR TERRITORY!" a voice shouted. The cloaked figure turned around to see a large group of snovers and cubchoos, led by a beartic and abomasnow. Despite being greatly outnumbered, the figure didn't seem to be fazed or intimidated in the slightest. "YOU DARE INTRUDE UPON THE WINTER TRIBE'S SOIL?!" Beartic yelled, sharpening his claws. The cubchoos and snovers yelled in agreement.

"You tell 'im, chief!"

"Let's skin him alive!"

The figure said nothing. He simply raced at them with incredible speed, and with a rapid series of night slashes, brought down the whole army. He then glared at the terrified tribe leaders. "Oh, don't worry." the figure said in a deep, menacing voice along with a slight chuckle. "I have something special in mind for you." He raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Soon, a gale of wind started to pick up, whipping he snow off the trees and even the ground. When the chaos ended, a large, flying pokemon was right behind the figure. "Wipe them from existence, my friend." The figure commanded. The tribe leaders tried to attack, but their moves seemed to do nothing to the pokemon. Soon, they were blown away by a torrent of wind. The figure walked past the unconcious tribe briskly, then leaped into the treetops. He wanted to get this done as quickly as possible. The sooner he completed his task, the sooner he could rid the world of all evil.

Articuno, the legendary pokemon, was meditating, perched on a large crystal shaped like a snowflake. As she opened her eyes, she saw a cloaked figure standing in front of her. Immediately she recognized the eyes from a vision she had two days ago. "Y-YOU! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?! WHO ARE YOU?!" she demanded.

"You needn't fear me, my dear. I am the savior of this corrupted world. I will lead it to a perfection beyond imagining." The figure was practically purring the words, but Articuno could still detect poison in his voice. Savior of the world? Perfection beyond imagining? What was he talking about? "And you, Articuno..." He continued, "Will play a major role in my plans." As he said this, His eyes glowed brighter.

"Wh-what are you-?!" Articuno managed to say, but suddenly, she felt drowsiness overcome her, and she fell asleep...


	14. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9 **

The sun was just rising when Bolt snapped awake in a cold sweat. The shinx had just had the strangest nightmare. In it, he saw a cloaked figure with glowing red eyes encounter a majestic, light blue bird pokemon. After putting the bird pokemon to sleep, the figure looked straight at Bolt, and the room disappeared around them. Then he lunged at him. The last thing Bolt remembered from the dream was feeling sharp claws rake across his body. As he tried to catch his breath, Bolt felt that he saw that figure before. Especially the eyes. Those cold, cruel eyes that seemed to stare into his very soul; Emotionless, remorseless.

In his attempt to forget the dream, he looked around the room for a bit. His eyes scanned across various posters of famous exploration teams like Team Charm and Team A.C.T., then stopped on Flare. The vulpix was still snoozing in her bed, a small smile on her face. _She seems to be enjoying herself..._ Bolt thought. _And she seems so defenseless when she's asleep..._A grin came across Bolt's face. sure it was still early, but hey, this may be his one chance. He went to his bed and pulled a feather from the hay. Then he went back to Flare and tickled her nose using the feather. Flare's face wrinkled up...

"ah...AH...ATCHOO!" the vulpix let out a sneeze and wrinkled her nose. Then she saw Bolt laughing.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" He said in a singsong voice.

"It's not even time to get up, Bolt..."Flare moaned, laying back down. Then she sat up again and stared at him. "H-how are you of all pokemon awake already?!"

"Oh...uh...well, I..."Bolt didn't want to revisit the nightmare, so he tried to come up with something. "I...though maybe if we got to the mess hall first, we'd get first serving for breakfast." Flare gave him a suspicious look, but didn't say anything. _Crap...busted._ Bolt thought.

"Well, if you wanna go down there now, I'm not stopping you." She said. Then, with a rather cute yawn, she went back to sleep. Bolt let a small chuckle out before walking out of the room, silently closing the door behind him. He then turned and made his way down the spiral staircase, and stopped at Team Darkstorm's room. He could hear the thugs snoring in there, and his already wide smile turned into a devilish grin...

When Bolt left the room ten minutes later, he resumed his walk down to the mess hall. But apparently he wasn't the only one there. The sparring ring was already up, and Auros was in it, hitting a punching bag. He paused a moment and glanced at the shinx. "Why're you awake?" he asked as he did a spinning jump kick, knocking the bag out of the ring. It fell with a loud thud as the shinx sat at a table. Bolt just shrugged. "Well, as a matter of fact, I'm actually glad you're here. I was getting bored kicking that sandbag around."

"So you wanna spar with me?" Bolt asked. Auros nodded. "Alright! I'm charged up!" He ran up and leaped into the arena.

"But before we start, let's make a quick deal." Auros mused "If I win, you find a way to set me up with a date with Flare."

"Wait, what?" Bolt asked.

"I mean, unless, of course, you two're already dating and all..."

"WHAT?! WHO SAID WE WERE DATING?!" Bolt shouted, his cheeks going red.

"Well, from what i could tell, you and Flare are pretty close. I just assumed you two liked each other."

"I like her and all, b-but not like that!"

"You're guard's down"

"Wait, what?" Auros did a sweep kick, knocking Bolt off his feet. The shinx felt the wind leave his lungs as he hit the mat. When Auros walked up to check on him, he did a suprise Spark on the riolu, sending the canine competitor staggering back a bit.

"GO, AUROS!"

"GET 'IM, BOLT!"

The guild had woken up, and was now crowding into the mess hall to watch the fight. Even Flare was awake. Arceus only knows what she would do to them if she knew about Auros's bet. Bolt re-focused on the battle. Auros was in a light fighting stance, dancing from one paw to the other. Bolt crouched down, ready to pounce on his opponent. Then suddenly, Auros vanished. Bolt looked around to see where he had gone, but didn't react fast enough to stop the force palm to his chest. Then auros vanished again.

"H-h-how is he doing that?!" Flare asked, bewildered.

"Auros has always been that fast!" Emma replied happily. "He's one of the strongest because of his speed. Capable of covering every side of the battlefield in an instant." Flare stared on as it seemed that Bolt was dancing around awkwardly, when in truth he was being pelted with blow after blow as he tried to hit back. Finally, one good tackle hit Auros, knocking him off balance. Bolt charged forward and used spark, sending the riolu out of the ring boundaries.

"Well that match was shorter than i thought." Flare quipped.

"Oh, he's just warming up." Ivy replied, walking up to them. "Just watch." Auros froze before he touched the ground, a blinding light shining from him. When the light subsided, Auros was hovering above the floor, his fur having turned from blue to gold. Flare stared as Auros, now a shiny riolu, flew back into the ring. Even Bolt was taken by surprise at this new transformation.

"What's going on?!" Flare shouted, "How is he a shiny pokemon now?! How is he doing that?!"

"Auros has an extremely rare ability that makes him unique. He and his father, the guildmaster, both have the Aura Shine ability." Emma explained. "Whenever his health is lowered to half or less, he transforms, and his stats all reach their max potential." Auros backed this up by moving far faster than before, this time a golden blur, and striking Bolt on the side of the neck, knocking him out. Just like that, the match was over. Flare was still staring with her mouth open at the seemingly supernatural riolu standing on the ring's ropes and listening to the spectators cheer. He then noticed her and walked up to her.

"Hey, hottie." He said.

"Ummm...h-hi..." Flare stammered, trying not to stare.

"You may not know this, sweetheart, but Bolt and I were fighting over who would win your heart." He said, giving a dashing grin. "So since i won, how about a date?"

"W-WE WERE NOT!" Bolt yelled from the stretcher now carrying him to Audino, looking rather embarrassed. "THAT'S A LIE, FLARE! I SWEAR IT!"

"You said if I win, you would set up a date for me and her." Auros pointed out. "So technically, you were-"

"No, thanks. Sorry."

"Come again?" Auros asked, looking to Flare.

"I said sorry, but no." Flare answered. Auros was silent for a moment.

"Oh my, you're pretty cold for a fire type." He said in a seductive purr. He then left to grab a bite, and Flare went to a rather pouty, but clearly embarrassed Bolt.

The rest of breakfast went by as it usually did. Lively, cheerful, energetic, with a twist of chaos. Bolt ate his usual mountain of food, Flare and the girls chatted about exploration teams they liked, but Team Darkstorm wasn't around just yet. A scream of rage was heard, and everyone turned to the door as Razor burst into the room with a goatee beard and mustache drawn on his face in red marker. Along with that were blue marker "tear streams". Kroc and Shadow were no better off. Shado looked like a clown, and Kroc was given a spyglass and fancy mustache. Paladin alone seemed to have been the only one left untouched. At first, the room was silent, then it filled with hysterical laughter

"ALRIGHT, WHO HAS THE NERVES?! WHO SNUCK INTO OUR ROOM AND USED US AS CANVASES?!" Razor roared. He didn't need an answer. One look at Bolt's smirk, and he knew immediately. With another scream of rage, Razor lunged at bolt, claws sharpened. Of course, even someone like Bolt had the common sense to run for it. The three crooks kept chasing the shinx around and around the room, the latter of which kept laughing, as if this were a game to him. Finally, he raced out the door, with the thugs right behind him.

"That's my partner." Flare snickered. "A prankster 'till the end."

"Now then, now that the chaos has mostly settled down," Lucario said when breakfast was over. "I have a very, very important announcement to make. Two weeks from now, as some of you may know, is the date for the annual guild expedition. This year, we intend to visit Calypso Canyon, a dried out river of sorts, to try and find a lost temple rumored to be hidden there. I believe it was called Sunrise Sanctuary. If you are interested, Please register your team name by the main entrance, and await the calling. We will only choose registered teams who have worked hard over the time they have spent here."

"Wow, sounds exciting, huh, Bolt?" Flare asked.

"I'm getting charged up just thinking about it!" Bolt responded.

"And now" Lucario continued, "For the guest team who will accompany us on this expedition. The lovely ladies of Team Charm!" As he said this, A lopunny, gardevoir, and medicham walked into the mess hall, recieving cheers from the members.

"Hello, everyone." Lopunny said happily.

"Greetings" Gardevoir said in her calm voice.

"Team Charm is here to party!" Medicham cheered. The three did their team pose, earning wolf whistles from most of the boys.

"Now then." Lucario said when everyone was once again quiet. "I don't want any of you to be rude or disrespectful to our guests while they stay here. Anyone who does not comply to this rule will be punished. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Guildmaster!" came the guild's reply. _A new expedition, a new adventure!_ Bolt thought. And he was proud to have a chance to be a part of it.


	15. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**Author's note: Hey everyone. Thanks for reading my story so far. It's hard to believe what was originally a PMD2 remake became an original tale after all(Yes, that is a fact). Just a reminder, If you have any suggestions, complaints, or criteria for me, let me know. I want all of you out there to enjoy my story.**

The Expedition was drawing nearer and nearer, and everyone was determined to get into it. All the teams were registered, Now Lucario just had to choose which teams worked hard enough to earn the honor. It was a tough choice, given how hard everyone worked. Especially the rookies, Team Thunderblaze. Ever since the announcement of the expedition, they've been trying their best to get picked. Speaking of, he wondered how they were doing on their current mission...

"WILL YOU WAIT UP, BOLT?" Flare called trying to keep up with the shinx who was running full speed. The two of them, along with their client Miltank, were running through the Autumnal Forest. The red, orange, and yellow treetops racing past them as they ran. Bolt had, once again, gotten overexcited and raced into the dungeon.

"WHAT?" Bolt called back, looking over his shoulder. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" Then he tripped. Flare ran up to his side as he lay face down on the path. Miltank finally caught her breath coming alongside Flare.

"Is he... always...like this?" Miltank breathed, clearly winded by the long run.

"You don't know the half of it." Flare sighed. "You should see how he eats."

"Hey, what's wrong with a little enthusiasm?" Bolt asked.

"Well when you run ahead of your partner in a place inhabited by aggressive pokemon, I can name a lot of things wrong with it!" Flare stated. Then a rustle was heard, causing bolt Bolt and Flare to turn to the sound and Miltank to cower. A Tauros was charging at them, and it looked angry.

"OH NOOO! WE'RE GONNA DIEEEE!" Miltank screamed in a panicked voice.

"Don't worry, Miss. We're prepared for this." Flare said as she and Bolt got ready to fight. the moment the bull pokemon was in range, Flare used fire spin to trap it in it's place. Then Bolt used spark to strike the wide open tauros. The foe fell over, fainted. Then it faded away. "Heh. Piece of cake." Bolt said, cocking his head to one side with a triumphant smirk. After calming Miltank down, they resumed their journey to find Bouffalant, Miltank's close friend.

"That was incredible!" Miltank gazed in wonder at the two young explorers in front of her.

"Well, we've been through a lot in our first few weeks of being explorers." Flare replied.

"Yeah, like saving Cleffa and defeating the Bisharp Bros." Bolt added.

"Wait, that was YOU TWO?" Miltank asked, her eyes bulging with surprise. The shinx nodded in reply as they made their way to the next floor. Soon they entered a large room with Bouffalant in the middle of it, fending off the monster house he had stepped into. "MY BOUFFYYYYY!" Miltank screamed as she charged into the horde.

"Don't call me that, please..." Bouffalant said as the pokemon surrounding him laughed. He then used horn attack on a scyther, who staggered back into bolt's spark attack. Flare used ember to take down another scyther as miltank used gyro ball to bring down a pidgeotto. The rest scattered, afraid of being beaten to a pulp. It was when the last of the monster house left that Bouffalant finally let his exhaustion show as he knelt down to rest. Miltank also seemed exhaused, but pleased to be back with the one she loved. Bolt and Flare layed down themselves, side by side. The autumn leaves fell around them as they relaxed, and the sunset shone throgh the trees to further increase the scenery's beauty. _Almost like a fairy tale forest..._Bolt thought happily.

"Thank you both for your help, Team Thunderblaze!" Miltank said. "I might never have made it without you."

"All in a day's work, Ma'am." Flare said, sounding really professional.

"You know, you two kids look like a cute couple yourself" Bouffalant grinned as Multank hugged his afro. Both of them turned red in the face(well for flare, a brighter red than it should be)

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" They yelled in unison. Then they frantically tried to explain.

"I-...SHE-...W-WE...WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!" Bolt shouted.

"Th-that's right!" Flare added.

"Aaaawwww, you two're turning red, that's even cuter!" Miltank squealed.

"WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!" they yelled in unison. Then an awkward hush came over them.

"Alright, alright, calm down." Bouffalant said. "We were only joking."

After a while, they were given their reward of 2,000 Poke, A luxray fang, and a heal seed. Then the pairs departed from the dungeon, each going to their own homes. The mission report was completed, and they got the rest of the day off.

"Whoa, really?!" Bolt asked, eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Yeah, you guys are actually back pretty early for a six floor mission in Autumnal Forest. You earned it." Lucario replied.

"YAHOOOO!" Bolt jumped up into the air. "Come on, Flare, let's head to the lake! We could have lunch there and everything!" Before Flare could respond, he grabbed a heap of food from the kitchen and dashed out.

"Well..." Lucario said, staring. "He seems a lot more energetic today."

"Don't remind me..." Flare moaned, a large sweat drop on her head.

"Now now, Flare, enthusiasm's a good thing."

"But too much leads to disaster." Flare pointed out.

"True. either way, have fun on your date." the guildmaster said, waving as he left.

"WE'RE NOT DATING!" Flare yelled after him. Then with another sigh, she walked out to where Bolt was eating and enjoying the scenery the lake had to offer. A deep blue body of water, with various plants and wildlife growing around it. Lily pads floated in the water, and small water pokemon like poliwags were swimming merrily in the cool lake. Flare grabbed some food from the pile and sat on the other side of it, making sure no one else mistakes them as lovers. _I mean,_ she thought, _He's a nice guy and all, hasty and childish as he is, but I don't like him like that! _Bolt saw Flare deep in thought, and wondered what she could be thinking about.

"Hey, what's up?" He asked.

"O-oh, n-nothing, nothing..." Flare replied nervously. Bolt simple-mindedly nodded and looked back to the lake. Then he got up and started running to the edge. Flare wondered what on earth he was doing until he leaped at the last inch of land and dove into the water. Flare waited for him to come up, bewildered, but Bolt didn't. 30 seconds...a minute...Flare was starting to worry that he might've drowned. She ran to the water's edge and peered in.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" Bolt yelled as he suddenly burst from the water, splashing and startling Flare. Then he laughed good and hard. "HA HA HA HA HA! You should've seen your face!"

"I THOUGHT YOU DROWNED, YOU IDIOT!" Flare yelled. "AND NOW I'M SOAKED!"

"Ah, don't be such a baby and get in here, the water's fine!" Bolt said, playfully pulling a terrified Flare into the water with him. She shot up, shivering and steaming, standing knee deep in the lake.

"It's f-fr-freezing!" Flare said in a trembling voice. Bolt smirked, but Flare saw he wasn't teasing, he was just playing around. So she decided to return the favor by splashing him.

"ACK! Hey, cut that out!" Bolt laughed. Then he felt himself get tackled into the water. The water fight lasted until the sky was a golden orange from the sunset, then they got out, shivering, soaked, and cold (especially Flare), but grinning. Bolt reached into his bag and grabbed towel and wrapped it tenderly around his teammate. She hesitated at first, but accepted the kind act. The second the towel touched her fur she already felt her warmth returning. The two of them cleaned up their mess from lunch and headed home after a good time. Thus, the first week before the expedition passed.


	16. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The week before the big expedition went by quickly, and before everyone knew it, It had arrived. Bolt and Flare had anticipated this day since it was announced as much as the rest of the guild, and now it was finally here! Every member in the guild was rushing through breakfast, eager to hear who would be joining it. three lucky teams would be selected, and two staff with them. But which ones would be the lucky bunch? It was time to find out. "Alright, everyone. This is the most difficult decision I've ever made, given how many of you worked so hard. So, even if you don't make the team, be proud of your feats from those two weeks passed." He took out a small roll of paper. "There will be four teams going on the expedition:" Everyone went silent. So an extra team got to go, increasing their odds... "Team Aurastorm!" Everyone cheered as Auros, Emma, and Zorro waved. "Team Unova!" Ivy gave a small smile, Riptide did a fist pump, and Koal hid his face, trying no to show his shyness. "Team Thunderblaze!" Bolt and Flare were stunned. They were rookies, and already they were going on a real expedition! They waved as they raced to join the others. "And Team Darkstorm!" Everyone booed as the three delinquents walked up, but cheered for Paladin.

"How did HE of all people get picked?!" Flare groaned, looking at Razor. The sneasel smiled back wickedly.

"Beats me. most stupidity?" Bolt snickered.

"I DARE YOU TO SAY THAT AGAIN, YARN CHASER!" Razor yelled, butting heads with Bolt.

"WHAT'LL YOU DO IF I DO SAY IT AGAIN?!" Bolt roared back, the pair glaring at each other.

"YOU LOOKING FOR A FIGHT?!"

"BRING IT, FROST FACE!" And the brawl begain. Everyone stared as the two bit, kicked, punched, and clawed withing a while cloud of dust.

"Shouldn't they just use a move?" Auros asked. "It would be more effective..."

"They're both idiots..." Ivy said, giving the brawlers a bored look. Then she turned to the guildmaster. "Shouldn't you stop them before they kill each other?" She asked him as he watched the fight.

"Rest assured, I'll stop it before then." Lucario said. "for now, let them exhaust each other."

"OW! NO BITING, YOU STUPID FELINE FURBALL! KROC! GET THIS CAT OFF ME!" Razor yelled as Bolt clamped his teeth onto the sneasel's leg.

"With pleasure, boss!" Kroc replied. And he leaped into the brawl.

"HEY! TWO AGAINST ONE IS CHEATING!" Auros yelled as he joined in too.

"YOU STAY OUTTA THIS, PERV!" Bolt yelled as he biffed Auros. Now all four competitors were brawling away. Delphox noticed Flare looking down at the floor, more embarrassed than she ever felt.

"Shall we heat up the competition?" She asked. Flare looked up at her. "we gotta stop it sooner or later." Flare nodded, and and they attacked at the same time with flamethrower and fire spin. The four competitors screamed as they were cooked to a crisp. When the flames died down, the rowdy fighters were in a smoking heap with spiraling eyes. Everyone was either staring at what had happened, or laughing at the fallen competitors.

"Will you four quit fighting like a bunch of children?!" Flare demanded. Delphox smiled as the vulpix ranted on. "You're embarrassing me, Bolt! You're acting like a two-year-old-!"

"Okay, okay, sorry." Bolt muttered. "Now can you please stop the room from spinning?"

After all the chaos, They finally set off to gather their supplies. After a trip to the storage and bank, Bolt and Flare headed to the Kecleon Mart, where many many wares were ready for sale. As Flare brought multiple items to aid them on their journey, Bolt was staring at a T.M. displayed in the glass counter. "Ah I see you have an eye on our T.M. 24!" Kecleon said, smiling brightly. "The move thunderbolt will surely make you much stronger, young one. Are you interested?"

"How much?" Bolt asked. _Man, if i had fingers right now, i'd be crossing 'em._

"Well, since this is your first time, I can offer it to you for a 40% discount of... 3,000 P."

"Bolt, how much do you have?" Flare asked.

"2,500..." He said glumly. Then he perked up and turned to Flare. "You think i could...?"

Flare sighed. "Fine. but you owe me. Got it?" She inquired, glancing at him and handing him 500 P.

"Sure, sure." He replied in a care free manner, then he handed over the total money to Kecleon. "3,000 exactly."

"Then here you go! One T.M. 24, Thunderbolt!" he said merrily as he passed the disc to him. Bolt caught it and looked at it.

"Soooo...how does it work, do i just hold the thing and learn the move automatically?"

"Yep. That's more or less the case." Flare answered. Then, after Bolt learned the new move, She looked to him. "How'd it go?"

"I think it worked. I'll test it on Razor-" He caught Flare's "killer eye" and froze. "Er, i mean...on...Auros?" She still glared. "Kroc or Shadow?" Glare. "That rock over there?" Her glare faded and she nodded. Bolt positioned himself. "Okay, here goes!" Electricity discharged around him as he focused. "THUNDERBOLT!" he shouted, and a lightning bolt shot from him toward the rock.

"HEY GUYS! WHERE'VE YOU BEEN? WE'RE ABOUT TO-" Auros said as he raced right in front of the attack. "BZZZZZZZLRGT!" Bolt stopped right away.

"Omigosh, Auros, are you okay?!" Flare called.

"M-maybe...a kiss...from a fair maiden...will help..." Auros muttered. Flare stared for a moment. Auros looked to her hopefully.

"No, Auros..." Flare said, a large sweat drop on her head. Auros groaned disappointed, as Flare turned to Bolt, still staring at him. "Hey, it wasn't your fault, Bolt. No need to feel guilty, it was an accident-"

"YAHOOOO!" Bolt shouted, attracting a crowd. "IT WORKS! AND I KNOCKED THE GUILDMASTER'S SON OUT!"

"What's the funny looking cat thing yelling about?" a teddiursa asked. Bolt froze in his victory dance and turned to glare at the teddy bear pokemon.

"FUNNY LOOKING?! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS?!" Bolt yelled. Flare then slapped him with her tails, sending him flying into the rock.

"I'm sorry, everyone" She said, embarrased. "He's a little...thick in the head."

"AM NOT!" Bolt yelled indignantly. His response was a torching from Flare, and he decided to shut up. After hearing another lecture from Flare about social behavior and healing from his burns, the duo made their way back to the guild, with Auros right behind them,where everyone else was packed and ready.

"Whoa, what happened to you, son?" Lucario asked. he was with Swap shop clerk Houndoom and Swellow, the guild messenger.

"just had a little trouble finding them is all, dad." Auros said.

"In fact, you could say he had a 'shocking' experience along the way." Bolt joked.

"Well...let's get going then." Lucario said, an they were off on a new journey.


End file.
